Today we are very excited to share an interview with Authors Marie Benedict & Courtney Sheinmel (The Secrets of Lovelace Academy)!
Meet the Author: Marie Benedict
Marie Benedict is a lawyer with more than ten years’ experience as a litigator at two of the country’s premier law firms. She found her calling unearthing the hidden historical stories of women. Her mission is to excavate from the past the most important, complex and fascinating women of history and bring them into the light of present-day where we can finally perceive the breadth of their contributions as well as the insights they bring to modern day issues.
She is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Mitford Affair, Her Hidden Genius, The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, The Only Woman in the Room, Lady Clementine, Carnegie’s Maid, The Other Einstein, and the novella, Agent 355. With Victoria Christopher Murray, she co-wrote the Good Morning America Book Club pick The Personal Librarian and the Target Book of the Year The First Ladies.
Her books have been translated into thirty languages, and selected for the Barnes & Noble Book Club, Target Book Club, Costco Book Club, Indie Next List, and LibraryReads List.
Meet the Author: Courtney Sheinmel
Courtney Sheinmel is the author of over 30 books for kids and teens, including the STELLA BATTS, MY PET SLIME, and MAGIC ON THE MAP series for young readers. She lives in New York City with her family, and she loves to hear from readers. Find Courtney on Instagram @courtneysheinmel.
About the Book: The Secrets of Lovelace Academy
From New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict and Courtney Sheinmel comes a historical adventure about a young girl plucked from a London orphanage to begin attending a boarding school with more secrets than she could imagine—perfect for fans of Enola Holmes.
Lainey Philipps has lived at the Sycamore Home for Orphaned Children since she was three years old. Now nearly a teenager, her life is hard, and she doesn’t expect it to get better—until a chance encounter during an open house changes everything when Lainey meets a woman who invites her to attend the prestigious Lovelace Academy.
Fitting in amongst the many privileged students within the ivy-covered walls of Lovelace Academy presents challenges unlike the ones Lainey has faced in the past. Her life of drudgery has hardly prepared her for the aristocratic airs and cutthroat academic ambition of the other girls. Terrified she’ll be cast out of the academy, Lainey grabs at her chance to prove herself by traveling to Switzerland to meet a female scientist crafting a groundbreaking theory.
~Author Chat~
YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?
Courtney and Marie: A few years ago, Marie wrote a historical novel for adults called THE OTHER EINSTEIN. It’s about Mileva Marić Einstein, a brilliant scientist who was one of very few women studying physics back in the late 1800s. She met the famous Albert Einstein when they were in school together (though he wasn’t famous back then). They got married, and many believe she may have helped with some of Einstein’s most important discoveries, though she didn’t get credit for them. Courtney loved Marie’s book. She and Marie agreed they wanted to write something about Mileva for younger readers. After much brainstorming, and a few false starts, we came up with the idea for THE SECRETS OF LOVELACE ACADEMY.
YABC: Is your main character like you?
Courtney: Our main character, Lainey, is a lot braver than I am. She’s also a lot better at math and science than I am. But we share a love of books, and I’d like to think I share her joy of helping others.
YABC: How do you know when a book is finished?
Courtney: When my editor says there’s no more time to make any additional changes! Seriously, even in books that have been published, I find things I’d change if I could. But I remind myself there’s no way to write a “perfect” book, just like there’s no way to be a “perfect” person. There’s just the best you can do in any given moment, and hopefully that’s enough and will resonate with readers.
YABC: What type of scene do you love to write the most?
Marie: Since my main mission as an author is to excavate from the past the most intriguing and important women of history, I always enjoy writing scenes focused on the lives and legacies of those women. While I adore our main character Lainey and the adventure on which she finds herself, I especially liked getting into the scenes where she and our real-life historical character — Mileva Maric Einstein — get to meet!
YABC: What word do you have trouble overusing?
Courtney: I would just use the word just in just about every sentence, if only I were just allowed to do so.
YABC: What is your favorite reading space?
Courtney: I love to read in bed. I turn off the “great big light,” as my five-year-old son calls it, and turn on my smaller reading lamp. Most nights, my aforementioned son falls asleep in my bed. So while he’s in dreamland, I can read and enter the land of stories.
YABC: How do you plan to celebrate the launch of your book?
Marie: I am so very excited that Courtney and I will be together in my hometown to do an event for the Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures series at the main Carnegie Library — on the very day our book releases! This is especially meaningful for me because that very library is where my immigrant ancestors began through journeys toward higher education. (Or even any kind of education, as children weren’t required to go to school when they first arrived!)
YABC: What’s your least favorite word or expression and why?
Marie: Ummm . . . except that, ummm, I always find, ummm, myself saying ummm! The word, ummm, takes away from, ummm, the cadence of a talk, or, ummm, the flow of a sentence.
YABC: What is your favorite holiday or tradition and why?
Marie: Can I pick a season rather than a holiday? Hands down, autumn is my favorite time of year. The vibrant, changing leaves, pumpkin spice everywhere, sweater weather, cozy reading time — need I say more?
YABC: What’s up next for you?
Courtney and Marie: We’ve been working away on something special to follow THE SECRETS OF THE LOVELACE ACADEMY, our first Lovelace collaboration, and as soon as we are allowed to discuss it, you’ll be among the first to know!
Title: The Secrets of Lovelace Academy
Author: Marie Benedict & Courtney Sheinmel
Release Date: April 22, 2025
Publisher: Aladdin/Simon & Schuster
Genre: middle grade historical fiction
Age Range: 8-12
